Yes you have to tuck it all the way back in. Backward arm movement doesn’t matter, once the arm goes forward with the ball it’s considered a pass attempt unless or until it’s tucked. That’s the rule. I agree it’s stupid, but that’s the rule. Your what ifs don’t matter, they show why the rule is stupid, but they don’t matter. Yes you’re right, it’s insane, BUT it’s the rule. Like I said, bad rule, officiated exactly as written.
By NFL rules hitting the ground is the BEGINNING of the fall NOT the end. Which on the surface makes sense, you’ve got a bunch of 6 foot tall people out there hitting the ground at all kinds of angles that make sure all 6 feet of them don’t hit the ground at once. If you declare the fall done the instant any part of the touches the ground what happens if they drop it. The rule is there for guys diving to catch the ball and it pops out when their shoulder hits, by your rule if their knee hits first that’s a completion, not common sense. Problem is the rule still gets stuck being vague, so we get a situation where a guy holds on the ball during all the “impact” parts of a fall and then lets go while he’s still got momentum. Sure looks like he finished falling, but by the rule he’s not. Again, bad rule, because it doesn’t define when a player is “through” falling, we know it’s after the instant of initial impact, and we know it’s before he gets back up on his feet. But with the rule as written it’s all a judgement call, and it penalizes players that use their momentum to get back up. Again, bad rule, officiated to the letter.
I agree with ALL of your logic on why the calls were logically wrong. What I’m pointing out is that the rules are written wrong. Happens. Especially in the NFL where they have a very thick rule book that tries to deal with every millisecond of possible action. Which is how we get situations where the refs are completely right while the results are illogical. The refs’ job is NOT to enforce logic, they enforce the BOOK.
I can agree that in the tuck rule and Johnson plays the refs are looking to the spirit of the law, and that even if it makes no sense to me at least there’s an argument to be had. They might possibly be right. It could have been a tuck. I ask what if it wasn’t, and really the only answer is it is if the ref says it is. The rulebook is vague enough to allow that.
As for Johnson I don’t see how any reasonable person can say he didn’t turn his body and wasn’t in the process of getting back up. But, again, the way the rule is written I guess since they don’t define what the process of a catch is whatever the ref says is part of the process is part of the process. Even when it isn’t.
As for last night’s game I’m not so sure it’s entirely more clear cut than the tuck rule and the Johnson catch. After all, any rule can be interpreted almost any way you want if you’re willing enough. Lawyers make a living at it. Who’s to say what “control” is? Maybe it is whatever the ref says it is, just like a tuck is a tuck when the ref says so or getting up is falling when the ref says so. Common sense and logic tell me Jennings caught it, but what are such faculties in the NFL.